Wire fence



(No M odeL),

A. P. CALDWELL.

WIRE' FENCE.,

l No. 372,060. Patented Oct. 25. 1887.

N. PErEns, Phmuxmgnpnqr. washingmn. u. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEErcE.

ALFRED CALDWELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

WIRE FENCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 372,060, dated October 25x 1887.

Application filed February 25, 1887 Serial No. 228,861. (No model.) I

To all whom, it may concern.-

Beit known that I, ALFRED F. CALDWELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illi nois7 have invented certain -new and useful Improvements in Vire Fences; and `I do declare the following tobe a full, clear, and eX- act description ot' the invention, such as will enable others skilled inthe art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specication.

This invention relates to an improvement in the construction of portable wire fences, the object being to'produce a fence which may be readily attached to its supporting-posts, the longitudinal wires of said fence being interlocked and firmly connected with the vertical cross-wires at their points of intersection, and the whole forming an elastic yielding structure that shall slightly give when struck by cattle and shall accommodate itself to the various changes of temperature to which it may be exposed. To accomplish these results I construct my fence as follows: The longitudinal wires, sufticient in number to form the fence, are placed at the desired distance from each other, and a series of short vertical wires are placed lacross these longitudinal wires at suitable distances apart and connected withl said longitudinal wires at their crossing-points by crimping or making a bend in each wire. Those in the longitudinal wires present, preferabl y, the greatest divergence from a straight line and the vertical or cross wires a less divergence, both wires being, however, bent in the same direction, toenable the fastening staple or clasp, which is then bent around them at their intersection, to be more readily secured in position. These crimps or bends in the longitudinal wires afford a certain amount of elasticitysut'ticientto counteract the changes in its length produced by such changes of temperature as the fence may be subjected to; but I propose to supplement this in certain cases, where the fence is liable to sudden shocks-as from cattle running against vit-by forming upon the end of each-wire where it is attached to the end posts a spiral coil, Which, as the wire I prefer to use is unan nealed, will act as a spring, allowing the fence to give to the blow and return to its normal position after the disturbing influence has passed; or if the longitudinal wires are annealed, and therefore untitted for the purpose of a spring, the ends of said wires may be attached to a crosspieee and the latter connected with the post by similarly coiled springs formed from hard 'wire that has not been deprived of its elasticity by the annealing process. I also make the vertical or cross vwires of the fence somewhat longer than the distancebetween the upper and lower longitudinal wires, so that they shall project both above and below the same, thus affording means for retaining a board at either the top or bottom ofthe fence, or both, as may be desired.

In the accompanyingV drawings, forming a part of this speciiication, the same letters of reference are used to indicate like parts in the different figures, Figure l being a perspective viewof a section of the fence, showing' the gen'- cral arrangement of its several parts and the method of uniting the longitudinal and vertical wires. at their intersections by means of a clasp or staple bent around the crimped portion ofeaeh wire. Fig. 2shows the mannerin which the vertical and longitudinal wires are crimped at their points of intersection, both wires diverging from a straight line to the same side. Fig. 3 shows a modilication in which the Wires arebent in opposite directions at their crossingpoints. Figs. 4, 5, 6, 78, and 9 show diiierent forms of clamps which may be used for the purpose of securing the vertical Vwires to the longitudinal wires at their crossings. Figs.

l0 and ll show the forms ofthe clamps I pre fer to use, the double clamp or staple, Fig. 11, being used for the purpose of connecting the lower longitudinal wire to the vertical Wires and the single clamp or staple, Fig. l0, connecting all the joints above those on the lower wire.

In constructing this fence Iremploy a suitable machine by means of which the longitudinal Wires a a, wound in suitable coils atthe proper distance from each other upon a reel, are drawn forward and united with the vertical wires b'b by means of suitable dies which crimp the wires a b at t-heir'points of intersection, and then securely bind them together at that point by means of clamps firmly set upon ICO the joining by the same die that forms the crimp. After leaving the dies the finished fence may be wound upon a spool in suitable lengths ready to set up and attach to the posts.

In Fig. l of the drawings I have shown a single length or panel of the fence complete, A being an end or straining post and A au ordinary supporting-post, such as are placed at suitable distances from each other along the line.

B is the fence, connected with thestrainingpost A as follows: It will be observed that the vertical wires b b extend both above and below the longitudinal wires, and for a short distance from the .post are bent around the guide and supporting strips ce, one of which strips is secured to said post at the top of the fence and the other to the same post at the bottoni, near thegronnd. These guidestrips assist in sustaining the fence in position, and may, if desired, be continued along the whole course of the fence from post to post, giving the advantage of a stiff top and bottom rail in case such rail is needed. The upper wireI prefer to attach to the post A by carrying it by the post and forming its end into a spiral coil, as d, which returns around the body of the wire a, and has its extremity secured to said post. The wires below the upper one may be attached to an upright bar, e, and two of them united, then carried beyond post A, formed into coils, returned,and fastened to the post A, as in the case ofthe upper wire. This method of securing the longitudinal wires to the straining-posts, together with the crimps in said wires, gives great elasticity to the fence, allowing it to accommodate itself to allow the expansion and contraction caused by changes of temperature as well as the shocks from collision with cattle, and when deflected from a straight line by such shocks to resume its normal position when the delecting force is removed.

I prefer to make the bends or erimps aand b' of both longitudinal and vertical wires deilect in the same direction, asl am thereby enabled to make the staples or clamps (shown on an enlarged scale in Figs. 9, 10, and 11) clasp thejoint tighter than if they deflect in opposite directions. The clamp for the upper joints, consisting of a single piece of wire bent into the form ofa staple, h, is inserted diagonally over the crossed wires between the dies of the machine, and is forced down by said dies and its ends caused to turn up and over the longitudinal wires.

The clamp which I use for the lower longitudinal wire, and which -may -also be used for the upper, if desired, consists of a staple, 71., and an additional staple, 7i', both of which are placed in the dies at the same time and secured around the crossed wires by one movement of said dies. rIhe staple lt is shorter than the staple li, and simply` passes around the crossed wires, as shown in Figs. 9 and 11, while the staple h passes around the `joint and hooks over the vertical wires, as before described. The two staples form the clamp shown in Fig. 11 when the operation is complete. Other forms of clamps, as shown in Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7,and 8, might be used to connect the longitudinal and vertical wires; but I prefer the clamp formed by the staples h and h as being easier to manipulate in the machine and giving the best results.

It will be apparent that either barbed or plain wire may be used in the construction of this fence, the barbsin nowise interfering with the operation of the machine by which it is manufactured.

I am aware that wire fences have been constructed having the longitudinal wires crimped at their points of intersection with the vertical wires, and that various kinds of wire ticshavc been used for connecting said wires at their points.

I am also aware that springs have been used to allow for the expansion and contraction of the longitudinal wires by changes of temperature, and I do not, therefore, broadly claim these devices, but limit my claims to the construction and arrangement of parts as hereinafter stated.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States the following:

1. In a wire fence, the longitudinal and vertical wires crimped or bent at their points of intersection, the bends in both vertical and horizontal wires being deflected to the same side,in combination with a clamp formed from a long and short staple surrounding the lower longitudinal and the vertical wires at the points wherethey are crimped and cross, and secured at each intersection above the lower wire by a singlestaple, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a wire fence, the longitudinal wire provided with a spirally-coiled spring formed thereon and returning around said wire, in combination with the straininglpost, as set forth.

' 3. In a wire fence, the combination of the longitudinal wires ofthe same with the crossbar attached to the wires near the strainingpost, two or more of said wires being united and carried beyond the post, formed into coils, returned, and fastened to said post, as shown and described, for the purpose set forth.

4. A wire fence consisting of longitudinal and vertical wires crimped at their points of intersection and secured at said points by suitable clamps, a strainingpost, and guide and supporting-strips c c, secured at one end to said post and sustaining the end of the fence by means of the vertical wires attached to said strips at the top and bottom, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof l afiix mysignaturein presence of two witnesses.

ALFRED F. CALDWELL.

Vitnesses:

M. T. E. CHANDLER, A. F. TEMPLE.

IIO 

